Reviews with content warning for Homophobia - Breakfast at Tiffany's

Maybe this would be enjoyable enough if you just removed the racism, racial slurs, sexism, homophobia, pedophilia, domestic violence, entitlement, fatphobia, classism, and subpar plot of the book. The MC was annoying at best and down right horrible at worst. He casually fantasized about violence of the female interest Holly and said he loved her multiple times while also saying she was an idiot because she doesn’t enjoy reading? It’s all very bizarre. The writing style was fine but each character was a disappointment and not lovable. Still unsure why this was a classic unless all that was required was to be like wealth and be white. Cause that’s all that was offered.

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samarakroeger's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

oops, didn't like this one! there was a LOT of offensive language (racist, homophobic, ableist, etc.) that I was not expecting. Holly Golightly is an overtly racist, mildly sociopathic fraudster and "American geisha" who does have an interesting backstory as a child bride. I've never seen the movie, but I'm pretty sure that Audrey Hepburn's Holly bears little to no resemblance to Capote's Holly.

Honestly, the writing was pretty good. Capote does have a way with words (if you ignore the slurs), but to me it felt like a pale imitation of Fitzgerald. Really, a lot of the aspects of Breakfast at Tiffany's feel like they were heavily lifted from other works, including from Isherwood and Fitzgerald (who I both consider to be far superior writers). How did this novella come to be considered an American classic ... I think it was purely because of the association with the (incredibly loose) movie adaptation.

overall, just kinda bleh. it needed to actually say something, but it really didn't. Michael C. Hall did a great job narrating the audiobook, though.

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kendramichele's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Holly Golightly ... all at once glamorous, selfish, crass, far from aspirational yet hypnotic. She strives for ambiguity. She shape-shifts as needed. She's unfulfilled and unloved; Holly's truest nature is survival.

Capote's New York of the 1940s is much like Holly herself: charming and desolate, magnetic and desperate. He offers a forlorn character study that transfixes the reader.

This novella has all the ingredients for an uninterrupted afternoon of reading: a short length, a brisk pace, and prose that strikes the balance between lyrical and sparse.

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juliaraimondi's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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ikristinaj's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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zoeypurves's review against another edition

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adventurous reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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cherryredmarlene's review against another edition

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fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

3 stars for Breakfast at Tiffany‘s itself but 3.5 because I liked the other stories included in this edition, especially “A Diamond Guitar”. I actually don’t see the value Breakfast at Tiffany’s has for readers today except your interested in Truman Capote’s works in general. The society and people depicted in this are all quite disgusting, very naturally racist and white supremacy also isn't anything other than some quirky character trait in here. I of course see how racism at that time was much more widely accepted than today and can differentiate, but because in Breakfast at Tiffany’s I don’t see any other aspect than the writing style (which is good but also doesn’t blow your mind) for which this story would be worth reading, I am a little disappointed after finishing it and expected a bit more since this story is made out to be so iconic.

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laineydunne's review against another edition

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dark emotional slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

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